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Ensenada Wine Tour Options


Cruisedreamer1
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I've been researching wine tours and found a "wine bar" in Ensenada that might let one not only sample different wines from the region (a charge, of course) but make bottle purchases of them at the same time. It is called Ojos Negros Wine Bar and Cafe on Ave. Ruiz #105. It's next to Papas & Beers Bar.

 

Has anyone been there and what did they think about it?

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I done the cruise ship's wine tour and enjoyed it but now want to try something else for this type of tour. Has anyone tried Baja Test Kitchen tour?

 

Cruisedreamer1, yes last January on the Crown Princess we booked Baja Test Kitchen with Chris(owner) and had a fabulous day. Much better wineries than the two offered on the ship's excursion. We also had a gourmet lunch at Finca Altozano. One of the best meals I have had in some time. The carmelized roasted brussel sprouts were fantastic as was the sauteed Octopus appetizer. We also had several other dishes including a mole lamb stew with their home made breads.

 

The wineries were very unique with very good wines. They compare with wines we have had on our trips to Paso Robles. Take a look at the reviews of Vena Cava and Pijuon wineries on TripAdvisor, both were great visits.

 

 

And Chris is an excellent guide, he and his wife live in Ensenada but also have an office in San Diego. Not a cheap tour, but well worth it and a memorable experience.

 

We liked this tour so well, we are going again at the tail end of our upcoming Hawaii cruise in October.

 

 

Doug

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... We also had a gourmet lunch at Finca Altozano. One of the best meals I have had in some time. The carmelized roasted brussel sprouts were fantastic as was the sauteed Octopus appetizer. We also had several other dishes including a mole lamb stew with their home made breads.

...

 

Doug

 

You are right Finca Altozano is a great restaurant. You should know that it isn't the only one. The food, lodging and entertainment scene in the Valle de Guadalupe continues to gt better and better.

 

As someone who has lived with Baja in my backyard for almost all of my life, people underestimate the all this area has to offer. Perhaps even more surprising is that Baja doesn't get all that much respect inside Mexico either.

Edited by SelectSys
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Many of the local wineries sell in the local supermarkets near port.

Calimax at Castillo and Sixta

Soriana and Calimax at Gastellum between Ave Lopez and Segundo.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

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Many of the local wineries sell in the local supermarkets near port.

Calimax at Castillo and Sixta

Soriana and Calimax at Gastellum between Ave Lopez and Segundo.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

You can, but why not have a great experience and spend the day in the Valle de Guadalupe proper? Great views, great wine, great scenery - you really can't go too wrong there. Find a local tour or rent a car. The whole area is incredibly accessible from the port.

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You can, but why not have a great experience and spend the day in the Valle de Guadalupe proper? Great views, great wine, great scenery - you really can't go too wrong there. Find a local tour or rent a car. The whole area is incredibly accessible from the port.

 

 

Just giving options. Many have no desire to take a full tour.

Have the same views and scenery near me. ;)

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

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Just giving options. Many have no desire to take a full tour.

Have the same views and scenery near me. ;)

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

No problem. For me, having lunch on the deck at Las Nubes in the valley would be a great experience in food, wine and views. It would be a view into another Mexico that would break many stereotypes regarding the sophistication of food and wines in Mexico.

 

I also like El Cielo for lunch, but the view isn't as great and the restaurant is on the expensive side. Monte Xanic is another great spot. To be honest, one of my least favorite locations is L.A. Cetto which is the probably the biggest winery in the valley.

 

Trip Advisor has the following list:

 

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g499403-Activities-Valle_de_Guadalupe_Baja_California.html

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I know some of the people affiliated with BTK and they are solid. If I was on a cruise ship and booking a tour they would be my first choice.

 

If you're looking for information about the Valle, I have a blog that might of help.

 

thevalledeguadalupe.blogspot.com

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Here are a couple of views from this weekend. It was great weather in the Valley with the wineries getting ready for their harvest. Taking a trip to the wine country will let you see a location in Mexico that is truly unique in the country and provides a great outing for visitors and locals alike.

 

Sorry about the photos - I don't really know how to upload better quality pictures.

IMAG00694.jpg.b55cb36565b631bd7fe4ea6498dfdc4d.jpg

IMAG00701.jpg.53bf3c27b5245368ca69e2670e670a6f.jpg

IMAG00695.jpg.b8eae8e82ed74ef5cd4582dd419a2b40.jpg

IMAG00696.jpg.f74b6a16a1e99b8231a0ec138ea453c1.jpg

Edited by SelectSys
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  • 2 weeks later...

I highly recommend BTK. We spent the day with Chris on Aug 10. The Valle is breathtaking and the boutique wineries we visited make phenomenal wine. Chris is very knowledgable, hospitable and is a great ambassador of the wine region. Our lunch was fabulous. We bought 7 bottles (avg price $15-20/bottle) and the ship held them until we disembarked. I bought wine skins from Amazon for the flight home. Nothing broke and I can't wait to share with friends. It was a day to remember.

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  • 4 weeks later...
I did this tour in April and it was the best part of my Carnival cruise. We had an amazing lunch, we drank decent wine and the tour itself was well thought out and executed. Highly recommend!

 

We are doing this tour again in three weeks on the way back from our Hawaii Cruise and I fully expect to have another great day with Chris. Three boutique wineries and an excellent lunch experience at Finca Altozano. I will provide a review when we return.

 

And, I plan on bringing back several bottles of wine which you can do on a cruise ship, but are limited on a land tour. This works for us since we are able to drive to San Pedro for the cruise.

 

Doug

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  • 4 weeks later...
We are doing this tour again in three weeks on the way back from our Hawaii Cruise and I fully expect to have another great day with Chris. Three boutique wineries and an excellent lunch experience at Finca Altozano. I will provide a review when we return.

 

And, I plan on bringing back several bottles of wine which you can do on a cruise ship, but are limited on a land tour. This works for us since we are able to drive to San Pedro for the cruise.

 

Doug

 

Just back from our Hawaii round trip that stopped on our last day in Ensenada. We once again did the Baja Test Kitchen boutique winery tour with an included lunch at Finca Alotzano in the Guadalupe Valley.

 

This tour makes this port become an excellent stop as you get very good wines, an excellent lunch, and a great tour guide with the owner Chris.

 

Even though this is a little pricier than the Princess ship excursion to two wineries, there really is no comparison in the quality of the wines with Chris . One of the wineries we visited just had three of their wines picked up on the French Laundry(famous Napa Valley gourmet restaurant) Restaurant wine list. Another winery we visited is on the wine list with a restaurant group out of San Diego and several in Mexico that the executive chef was on the Top Chef reality show as a celebrity judge. All of the wines we had that day far surpassed any we had previously on the Princess excursion to LA Cetto and the other winery.

 

And the restaurant we visited was again one of the best meals all 4 of us have had. We had several courses(6 total) including sauteed octopus, roasted brussel sprouts, lamb taco's, and a lamb stew called birria for our main course with the homemade breads and tortillas.

 

This is a Campestre style restaurant, everything cooked over open flame, and you sit outdoors in a large, covered patio. Excellent ambiance and a unique dining experience.

 

 

If you are tired of the same old Ensenada excursion and want to get off the ship and do something special, this is an excellent choice! Chris told me he also does a foodie tour and a craft beer tour, which we may try someday.

 

Doug

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... We once again did the Baja Test Kitchen boutique winery tour with an included lunch at Finca Alotzano in the Guadalupe Valley...

 

This tour makes this port become an excellent stop as you get very good wines, an excellent lunch, and a great tour guide with the owner Chris.

 

Even though this is a little pricier than the Princess ship excursion to two wineries, there really is no comparison in the quality of the wines with Chris

...

If you are tired of the same old Ensenada excursion and want to get off the ship and do something special...

 

I am glad you had fun in the Valle. San Diego has two local wine areas and I prefer the Valle de Guadalupe any day over Temecula. Valle de Guadalupe has good wines, good food, great prices, wonderful scenery and a relaxed rural atmosphere.

 

I am also struck by your comment regarding quality of experience for a bit more money. Reminds me of that old saying, "you get what you pay for."

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I am glad you had fun in the Valle. San Diego has two local wine areas and I prefer the Valle de Guadalupe any day over Temecula. Valle de Guadalupe has good wines, good food, great prices, wonderful scenery and a relaxed rural atmosphere.

 

I am also struck by your comment regarding quality of experience for a bit more money. Reminds me of that old saying, "you get what you pay for."

 

Thanks, and I agree, other than Briar Rose in Temecula, the wineries we have experienced with Chris far surpass the typical experience in Temecula. In fact, I would put this wine experience similar to Paso Robles 10 years ago. This area is coming on strong with wineries like Vena Cava, Pijoan and Lechuza.

 

The Nebbiolo at Lechuza compares favorably to some of the best wines we have had in Paso Robles. In fact, we just ordered a case of it.

 

And, you are also spot on with the comment "you get what you pay for!"

 

Doug

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Have you visited Las Nubes Winery and if so which wines did you enjoy?

 

Yes, on our first trip we went to Las Nubes. While it is a good winery and has a nice view from their deck, it was a little too large for us. We like going to the boutique wineries. I don't remember the wines from last January, but I would say Las Nubes is on par with Vena Cava, but not as good for us as Pijoan or Lechuza.

 

BTK will take you to Las Nubes, and I am sure Chris can recommend their wines.

 

All four of these wineries are much better than the ship's excursion wineries.

 

Doug

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We are looking forward to our 3 winery tour and hope for good weather in November.

 

You will have a great day, and if you are going to Finca Altozano for lunch I highly recommend the sauteed octopus and the birria lamb stew that you make into tacos. Everything we ate there was amazing.

 

Doug

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  • 1 year later...

We had a great day in Valle de Guadalupe visiting wineries and lunch at Finca de Altozono with hiring a driver for a very reasonable price. Omar Contreras email is: whereveryouwantogo@gmail.com. It was a pleasure to spend the day with him.

 

You will need to do a bit of homework as to the wineries you want to visit, but Omar can make calls to the places that require a reservation. Surprisingly, many of them do. This is what we did:

 

9:00 Pick Up

10:00 Adobe Guadalupe Winery

11:30 Decantos Winery

1:00 Lunch at Finca Altozano

2:45 Monte Xanic Winery

5:00 drive back

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  • 2 weeks later...

I finally found the website for Guadalupe Valley Wine tours http://wineroutebaja.com/

I chatted with him, in English, and he is sending me an email with info. His price direct is $55 for a tour from the cruise ship port in Ensenada. He will choose from the wineries that he thinks has the best experience and with our request for a light lunch at a winery. He knows which ones are open on the Tuesday that we are there and will make reservations for us. He said we will pay 30% up front and the remaining at the end of the tour. I am more comfortable booking directly with Luigi than with Trip Advisor or other.

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I finally found the website for Guadalupe Valley Wine tours http://wineroutebaja.com/

I chatted with him, in English, and he is sending me an email with info. His price direct is $55 for a tour from the cruise ship port in Ensenada. He will choose from the wineries that he thinks has the best experience and with our request for a light lunch at a winery. He knows which ones are open on the Tuesday that we are there and will make reservations for us. He said we will pay 30% up front and the remaining at the end of the tour. I am more comfortable booking directly with Luigi than with Trip Advisor or other.

Thanks! I will be checking this out. We will be in Ensenada in a couple of weeks. This might be a great tour option for us. We had not planned on getting off the ship originally. Now, we might!

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